Boot or shoe



(No Model.) 7

I W. NORTON.

BOOT 0R $1105.

No. 544,263. Patepted Aug. 6, 1895-.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM NORTON, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS.

BOOT OR SHOE.

QPEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 544,263, dated August6, 1895.

Application filed January 21, 1893. Serial No. 459,290. (No model) Toail whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM NORTON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Boots or Shoes, ofwhich the following is a specification, reference being had therein tothe accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows in side elevation a shoe embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a view showing the said shoe in section on line 2 2of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows in side elevation my improved fastening devicebefore itis set. Fig. 4 isa partly-sectional view showing the saidfastening device set in a piece of leather or other material. Fig. 5 isa view showing a portion of the upper and gore of my shoe. Fig. 6 is aperspective of the fastening device detached.

A is the upper of the shoe, which may be in one piece, and is providedat one side with a gore b of elastic material. The said gore is securedalong one side and thelower end thereof to the rear quarter of the upperA, and at the opposite side has secured thereto a strip 1) of leather orsimilar material. To the said strip and the corresponding edge of theupper are applied the fastening devices, which presently are to bedescribed.

When a person is standing or walking, the pressure of his weightoccasions a lateral spreading of his foot, which occurs chiefly and to acomparatively considerable extent at the instep portion-that is to say,adjacent to and at the sides of the shank portion of the shoe which heis wearing.

With the object in view of accommodating the lateral spread occurring inthe places just referred to, and affording to the foot ease and freedom,as well as relief from compression when ones weight is imposedthereupon, I extend the opening, which I form in the side of the upperand in which the gore is inserted, down to a point which is close totheedge of the sole. While the shoe is being worn the said opening and goreextend beneath the hollow of the arch orinstep of the wearer. I alsocurve the lower portions of the opening and gore forwardly, as shown inFig. 1, in order to locate thelower ends thereof as nearly as may bebeneath the arch or instep. In this manner I provide fully foraccommodating the lateral spread which occurs in walking and standingbelow the instep or arch and at the sides of the foot, and also forfitting comfortably the rounded swell of the arch or instep. The openingand gore are located at some distance back from the front line of theupper in Fig. 1, thereby giving a smooth and unbroken front to the shoeand relieving the gore from the wear which it 0therwise would receivefrom the skirts of the wearer of the shoe. Heretofore it has beenproposed to locate a gore at the front, and it has been found necessaryto add a shield or guard to protect'the same from the excessive wear towhich it is exposed and which has operated to ruin speedily itsappearance. The gore, arranged and located as described and shown, actsto contract the upper aroundthe foot and ankle of-the wearer so as tofit nicely and smoothly when the weight of the wearer is removed.Preferably the opening and gore are at the inner side of the shoe, whichonables the fastening devices to be reached by the wearer more easilythan fastenings which are on the front or outer side of the shoe.

For the purpose of closing the opening I use, by preference, a row offastenings or hooks and a corresponding row of eyes at. I have shown theformer applied to the strip b and the latter to the edge of the frontquarter of the upper, although the positions may be reversed relativelyto each other. The fastenings or hooks consist of flat metal plates 0,which may be ornamented and may be of any desired shape in plan view.Each is provided at one end with prongs g, by means of which they aresecured in the material. At

the other end each fastening has a recurved or hook-shaped portionadapted to enter and engage one of the eyelets d. Tlhe said portion isslightly less in width than the adjacent portion of the plate 0' inorder that it may readily enter the eyelet. bill 0 thereof issubstantially parallel with the plate 0. The neck 0 of the said portionis curved in transverse cross-section to fit the curve of the eyelet,the said neck being con- .vex on that side which comes in contact withthe eyelet. This construction notonly permits the neck and bill of thehook-shaped portion to get back into its proper position when in theeyelet, but also prevents the side edges The point or IOC versely soonresults in the rubbing off of the finish of the eyelet, as well as inthe cutting or wearing of the latter, and the appearance of the shoethereby is impaired. The bills 0' are made quite short, being only alittle longer than is required to enable them to engage with the inneredge of the eyelet and hold. The gore b is of such dimensions that ithas to be stretched slightly in engaging the fastenings with the eyeletsafter the shoe has been drawn onto the foot of the wearer, it remainingsomewhat under strain after the fastenings have been engaged. Thisguards against accidental unfastening of the shoe. The form of thefastenings or hooks is such that the engagement of the series of thesame upon a shoe with the opposing series of eyelets is elfected almostinstantaneously and'simultaneously, and without any difiioulty orefiort. All that is required is that the gore should be stretchedslightly, whereupon the hooks may be forced by a slight lateral pressureinto the eyelets. In unfastening the shoe, all that is required is topull the strip I) outwardly with slight force at the top, at the sametime drawing upon it in a manner to stretch slightly the gore.

A tonguefol" leather or other suitable material is secured at its lowerend inside the shoe, and lies between the foot of the wearer and thegore, thus serving to protect the elastic material from the moisture ofthe foot and renderi-ng'it more durable, and in addition protecting thefoot from the heating and sweating etfect ot the material. The saidtongue is wide enough to cover fully the fastenings and eyelets at theinside.

The securing-prongs g and recurved portions or hooks project from thesame side of the plates 0. In consequence the fastenings have but littlethickness and have no projections which can be felt beyond the thicknessof the material forming the side of the shoe.

What I claim is- The improved shoe having an opening in the upperthereof at the side of the shoe and some distance from the front of thelatter, an elastic gore secured to the rear quarter of the upper, thesaid opening and gore extending down to a point which is close to theedge of the sole and also down to the hollow of the foot ot'the wearer,and a series of eyelets and corresponding series of hooked fasteningsapplied to the respective meeting edges, the hooks of such fasteningsbeing reduced in width, curved in transverse section to conform to theinterior of the eyelets having short bills to enable them to be engagedand disengaged by slight lateral pressure, and provided with securingprongs projecting to the same side as the bills, substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM NORTON.

Witnesses:

WM. A. MAoLEoD, ROBERT WALLACE.

